Delirious Findings
by OceanicShadows
Summary: After plummeting off the Ghost, Kanan jumps to try and save his Padawan. Unfortunately, they're stranded waiting for the crew to find them. After both of them end up sick, what will they learn about each other that they have been hiding? Rated T for mild suggestive content. M/M Ezra/Kanan relationship. If you don't like, don't read. This is my first slash fic.
1. Chapter 1: Freefall

****Okay all, play nice with me. I wrote this fic for a viewer and while really sick (though sickness and I are becoming quite good friends). Not quite sure my own views on this relationship. I find it can be quite cute if written properly something I'm hoping I did, but I like characters in character and tried to portray it to the best of my ability and so it's not as strong as I think I was supposed to write it but oh well. It's a first for me. If I get enough positive feedback I may make a sequel and continue on with it.**

 **If M/M slash isn't your thing, don't read please. That simple folks** **I'm working on another fic that isn't, to appease those peeps! Hope the people that requested it like it! Enjoy! **~Ocean**

 **Chapter 1: Freefall**

Ezra ducked as a TIE fighter came screaming by firing multiple shots. He was glad they all missed him. All of his concentration was being put into not falling off the ship that was blazing through the clouds at lightning speed. Hera was currently trying to dodge the fighter vessels, all without losing the precious cargo that had been trapped outside the safety confinement of the vessel.

As the TIE circled and came back, it fired its cannons causing the whole ship to quake. Ezra stumbled around trying to maintain balance. He didn't understand how his master was able to remain standing and not stumble too much.

"Ezra focus! It's just like training! Picture being part of the ship!" Kanan said as he dodged another storm of lasers flying by. The two had been having an in-air training session when a group of TIEs ruined the day. Now the two were trying to keep alive while Hera maneuvered trying to dodge and lose the TIE ships.

Each time they had tried to get to the hatch they would be forced to retreat back towards the nose of the ship. Kanan had his light saber out and was trying to deflect shots fired at him back towards the TIEs. They had already decided that Ezra wasn't strong enough to deflect a shot that large after he almost fell off earlier.

"How can I focus Kanan, when I'm going to die!" The youth yelled back over the sounds of the engines and the air rushing past them.

"You're impossible!" Kanan yelled back frustrated as he deflected a shot that managed to hit one of the TIEs; it didn't deter it too much unfortunately.

"Shields are down. Kanan, Ezra I need you to hang on tight to something I'm going to try and get behind them to try and buy you guys time to get inside. I can't do any maneuvering with you guys on top." Hera's crackled voice came through their communications links.

"What do you think we've been trying to do? It's not like we're having a picnic up here!" Kanan retorted. The two Jedi didn't have to be told twice though; finding something to grasp on to as Hera angled the ship and did a loop around.

Using the force to stay on the ship while it performed its acrobatics wasn't all that hard. The youth didn't like the idea that below them, somewhere, was an ocean that he could fall into. That in itself was pretty good motivation to not let go.

When they were leveled out again Ezra let go, slowly. His hands were trembling. He told Kanan training today was a bad idea. Not just because of a feeling, but because for the last few days he had felt under the weather.

"Kid, Get to the hatch!" Kanan shouted.

Kanan grabbed Ezra as he passed and gave him a small jerk to snap him out of his thinking to get him to start running. They both had to dodge the Lesat in the turret's post as he spun around trying to get one of the Imperial crafts.

Kanan jumped over the turret, so Ezra could swing wide, and landed at the hatch managing to get it open despite all the wind and force of vacuum. Chopper beeped in frustration as the opening caused a strong suction, blowing anything loose around inside. Ezra was soon almost to his target.

Just as he was within 10 feet of the hatch, he felt a disturbance in the force telling him things were about to get bad. Kanan must have felt it too because he urged Ezra to hurry.

A lone fighter that had been covering the sky above them swooped down and took aim. The imperial dodged Zeb's shot and landed a perfect shot right next to the kid. Ezra shouted out in pain as part of the cannon fire hit his leg. The whole ship jerked due to the lack of shields causing Kanan's Padawan to stumble. Another shot from Zeb sent the vessel spiraling.

Ezra ran out of room to get his footing and slipped. The teen tried to grab the edge. Kanan saw what happened and made a dash for the opposite side of the ship to try and grab his student. He didn't want to think about what would happen if he lost Ezra.

The other TIEs had maneuvered and sent another wave of fury at the freighter causing another violent jerk of the ship which shook Ezra so much he lost his grip and plummeted.

"NO!" Kanan skidded to a stop at the edge. He shut his eyes and managed to grab on to his student using the force in the same manner he had the very first time Ezra had fallen off the top. This time though, they almost 30,000 feet above the ground, Ezra still didn't have the training to be able to slow himself down. He finally felt his grip on Ezra and started to pull him up.

"Hera, the Kid fell off. Might be a good time to lose those fighters!" Zeb shouted having witnessed his buddy take the plunge. He finally managed to knock another vessel out of the sky, he grinned and set up for the next one.

"Does Kanan have him? I can't lose the TIEs when I have to keep flying straight. I need them inside so I can get rid of them. Why don't you shoot a few more down? and Sabine, try hitting one too." Hera's worried voice came over the com.

"I have him." The Jedi said with a strained voice as he struggled to bring the youth up.

"I'm trying Hera; these guys are smart. I've never seen some of these flight strategies they're taking." Sabine crackled in as she attempted again to hit one.

They were over the planet's largest ocean. Hera remembered a comment that Ezra had made earlier that day.

* * *

"Today should be an easy day. Why don't you and Kanan go for explore the beach. The ocean is a tourist attraction if not a little cold this time of year." The Twi-lek offered. She had noticed the teen looked off the last few days and thought that it was all the stress and fighting.

"I can't swim." The youth commented bitterly. He looked out at the deep blue ocean on the horizon and shuddered.

"I wouldn't recommend if even if you could. The water is heavily polluted with bacteria. If one got into your system you'd be sick for weeks." Hera glanced to him opening her mouth to question why he couldn't swim when Kanan came in.

"Training time Ezra. Did you forget?" The older male crossed his arms looking at the kid. He had been waiting for several minutes with no sign of his student so he finally left to find him.

"Oh yeah. Sorry Kanan." He used training as the excuse he needed to get away from Hera's motherly nature, not really wanting to talk about not being able to swim.

* * *

Ezra felt himself coming back up, his heart was pounding. His leg felt like it was on fire and he could feel blood dripping down his leg.

Kanan had managed to save him once again. Just about the time he could see his master's concentrated face, he heard the over-familiar screaming come whizzing by followed by more shots from both parties. He felt the force grip on him disappear and he was freefalling again, heading directly where gravity had intended. Down.

"KANAN!" Ezra didn't know what to do. He felt like he was going more than 100 miles per hour, tumbling to his death.

The last shot from the TIE before Zeb pegged it had caused Kanan to lose his focus. Now he couldn't find Ezra in the force, but he heard the desperate shout. Without a hesitant thought of what he was doing, Kanan jumped. He heard Hera radioing in to hang on as she took another loop.

"Uh…Hera. Kanan just did something stupid again." Zeb said taking aim and knocking the second to last TIE.

"Oh really? And just what is our brave leader doing?" She said sarcastically. She was used to their banter during serious times to keep spirits up, and didn't notice the seriousness of Zeb's voice.

"Well…For one, he just jumped off the ship after the kid."

"WHAT!?"


	2. Chapter 2: Changing Tides

**Chapter 2: Changing Tides**

Kanan took a deep breath and forced himself to relax as he fell. Once finally getting under the clouds, he scanned the air, looking for his falling Padawan. He felt Ezra's fear and panic, trying to hone his location finally seeing him about 500 feet away from him. They would hit the water in about a minute's time.

"Ezra! Keep your feet straight when you hit! Use the force to guide you and relax your body and don't breathe in when you hit!" Kanan shouted in a feeble attempt to prepare the youth.

He saw Ezra was almost in complete hysterics and new the kid hadn't heard him. He was slightly confused because even when scared, Ezra was normally able to keep his cool. What had him this terrified and why didn't he know of it?

He did everything within his power to slow them down; he was successful to a certain level, but still, he saw Ezra hit with a huge splash disappearing beneath the surface of the water.

Ezra didn't know why he had slowed but as he saw the water getting closer he started to panic even more. He hit the water, feeling the molecules shatter beneath him along with more pain surging through his body. He went under, struggling to get to the surface only to find that he didn't know which way was up.

Somewhere, he heard something else hit the water surface.

Kanan prepared himself to go under and hit the surface breaking the water tension gently becoming fully submerged. He willed the force to keep him from inhaling sharply as the cold water embraced him, shocking his body. His body relaxed, once he felt which way he was drifting, he kicked towards the surface.

Just as his lungs were threatening to bust from lack of air, the youth floated the surface struggling and kicking and fighting to stay above the line of water. Each time a wave hit, his head went under which sent him further into his panicked frenzy.

Kanan broke the surface taking in a huge breath, filling his lungs before he looked around. He saw the splashing and heard the boy choking, quickly making his way over to the terrified teenager, realizing hen that his student probably lacked the ability to swim.

Ezra continued to struggle getting more exhausted by the second. He had inhaled and swallowed a lot of water, choking trying to expel his lungs causing him even more exhaustion. Finally, unable to fight any longer, his body started to sink, the youth failed to have the strength to pull himself up and he sunk below the surface, powerless to the gravity pulling him down.

"Ezra!" Kanan dove under the surface when he saw Ezra disappear.

As the world started to go black, he felt strong arms grab him and haul him to the surface. His body took over again the moment it sense air and he started coughing and hacking trying to expel all the water that had entered his body. He was too disoriented, causing a new wave of adrenaline coursing through his body and he started to struggle again, scared of going back down.

"Hey! Calm down kid!" Kanan shouted, falling below the surface as he struggled to keep his flailing student above the water. He used the force to send calming waves hoping that Ezra would be able to feel them. The fear and panic was strong and flooding the youth's senses and rationality. Ezra kept struggling, his brain was currently working off survival, not cognitive thinking.

Kanan knew that panic caused situations to become dangerous, especially in the water. He knew that if he didn't get Ezra to snap out of it, he was at risk himself of drowning. He remembered at the temple watching one of the masters reviving one of his clan members that had been trying to save someone who was panicking. They had gotten shoved under as the person tried to use them to get above the water.

"Ezra!" Kanan wasn't going to give up even after the 5th time being shoved under the water. The older Jedi managed to keep his cool, knowing one of them needed to. He grabbed Ezra's forehead and focused all his energy there. He could feel something break finally and Ezra stopped struggling for the moment. The fear was still very prominent, but Kanan had at least gotten through.

Ezra started to cough and sputter more as a wave covered him right when he was inhaling. He was fixing to panic but Kanan was right there to calm him down and keep him above the water.

"Calm down Ezra…I've got you. I need you to listen and focus. If a wave comes, hold your breath until it passes over you. I promise, I've got you and I'm not going to let you sink." Kanan did his best to have a soothing voice but he was still struggling to stay above the surface from trying to support the both of them.

Water was not an enemy to him. At the temple they had many water exercises to prepare them for their future missions around the galaxy. He could swim and he could remain calm in this type of situation; Something that Ezra needed to keep from going into another frenzy of struggle. Kanan remembered as a youngling being put in situations similar to this. They had been terrifying, but not impossible.

* * *

With the TIEs gone, Hera was flying as fast as she could along the surface of the water looking for any signs of her crew. She didn't know exactly where she had been when she had lost them, she had made many loops and turns and spins trying to shake them. The pilot pulled up to make another round when the fuel light went off.

"Karabast!" She turned the com on.

"Spectre 1, Spectre 6 do you copy?" She tried for the 20th time to reach them. All that returned was static.

"Hera the _Phantom_ is too low on fuel. I need to take her back before I run out." Sabine said. She had started looking the moment Zeb said Kanan had jumped. She had no lucky what so ever even with the use of her Mandalorian tech gear.

"Alright, I have to too. We'll meet at refueling station and think of a more organized plan." She shut the link off and headed for land, staying low, still scanning the water for signs of life. She knew that the older Jedi could swim and would be fine, but if Kanan hadn't reached Ezra….

* * *

The two humans remained floating above the surface for a few hours. Ezra had gotten into a good routine of holding his breath when Kanan told him to but his fear hadn't gone down any. They system they had found was working well, except the youth was exhausted and injured, the coldness of the water helping to keep pain and swelling down, but it would only be a matter of time before the adrenaline would start wearing off.

Kanan's focus was currently on Ezra and making sure he stayed calm otherwise he would have tried to locate their ship. Even still, Kanan kept his eyes and mind out slightly for any signs of Hera, he knew she would be out looking.

Another wave hit, this one much larger. The swells were getting bigger and more frequent; the tides were changing and that greatly concerned Kanan. Sabine had told him that the changing tides could potentially get dangerous. He had Ezra under the control at the moment, but he knew that the smallest thing could trigger another panic attack, for example, remaining under water much longer than he wanted or expected.

" Kanan?" Ezra was stuttering, he held his breath from another wave, gasping when he was above water again. Kanan looked over to him, his lips had turned a pale blue, his whole body shaking. The needed to get out and get warm somehow. Once the suns went down the temperature would plummet. Kanan tried to remember what else Sabine had told him about the planet.

"Yeah?" Talking was still a good sign. It meant that Ezra was feeling a little more comfortable; if he could keep him talking, maybe he would finally calm down to a rational state of mind. The older Jedi was cold, but he had been using the force to keep himself warm, it was always a nice trick to know and something he planned to teach Ezra, after he taught him to swim.

"I'm.. .cold…" He coughed as water entered his mouth as he tried to speak. Kanan felt bad, he didn't know how to comfort Ezra but he wanted to.

"I know. We're going to get out of here soon. Just stay calm and focus on me okay? Focus on the Force." He was worried about Ezra, not in his usual way however.

He had a sudden urge to scoop him up and hold him close telling him everything would be okay. After he calmed down he would start to kiss him softly on the lips and then his chin followed by-. Kanan shook his head violently letting himself plunge slightly into the bitter cold water. Where the hell had that idea come from?

Over the last month or so he had noticed strange changes happening in their bond but he didn't know how to describe them. They were confusing but familiar at the same time. Ezra had also been acting strange, more so the last few days. He avoided staying alone with him for long amounts of time and didn't like to spend time talking like normal.

"I...I feel…" Ezra started again, feeling something in the force. As his student spoke, Kanan felt a small ping as well in the system. He looked in the direction the force pushed him. There, in the horizon, was a small islet. It was a fair distance away. Ezra wouldn't be able to swim that far with his level of exhaustion, but they needed to try.

"I see it. Alright Ezra..." He saw his student nod as his eyes lids fluttered as he forced them to remain open.

"We're going to swim to the island. I need you to kick your feet up and down just like you do when we're in anti-grav mode on the ship okay?" Ezra gave him a small nod and kicked a little, shutting his eyes in pain and going under slightly. Kanan kept him up though.

After a few more tries and a lot more pain radiating through the force, Kanan had him stop and rethought his plan.

"Okay, let's try this, I'm going to put you on your back so that I can tow you over there." Kanan started to do so eliciting Ezra to panic and shoot straight back up, accidentally getting away from his master starting to weakly panic as he sunk. Kanan grabbed him quick enough and calmed him wrapping an arm gently around the youth's body to comfort him, using his legs and other hand to keep them afloat.

"Hey…Calm down. I need you to trust me alright. I won't let you sink and I won't let you go." Ezra nodded again and remained calm this time when Kanan gently placed him on his back and started to tow him. Ezra relaxed after he found out that he was able to stay floating much better this way.

It took almost another two hours of swimming with all the swells crashing around them, pushing them back and forth in directions they didn't want to go, but the two made it. Kanan managed to drag them onto the beach moving them away from the crashing waves before he collapsed himself from exhaustion. It took several minutes before he recovered enough to move and looked over at his student.

Ezra had turned onto his stomach and was shivering violently, the clothing on his right leg was in shambles from being hit almost directly, his leg was badly burned and still bleeding. Kanan felt the cold air hit causing him to shiver and knew they would need to find some kind of shelter. He looked around and saw the there was a fairly large group of trees in the center. He didn't feel any danger but decided to go check it out first anyway.

First thing was first. He grabbed his com link and tried to activate it.

"Karabast…" The Jedi cursed, getting nothing from the device; it had become waterlogged. He dragged himself up off the sand, not caring about the grains of sand that stuck to his wet clothes, hair and everything else. He took a deep breath to calm his body before he looked to his student.

"I'll be right back Kid. I'm going to go find a warm place for us to stay until Hera can come pick us up." He knew Ezra hadn't heard him, the youth had lost consciousness by this point. Kanan stood and made his way inland further to find a place where they could stay.

After investigating the area, he found a group of rocks that provided a nice shield from the wind. Using his light saber, Kanan cut down some branches and hauled them over to better insulate the area. As he worked, the older human thought back to earlier after Ezra had tried to skip out on Jedi lessons.

* * *

"Kanan, can we skip lessons today. Today doesn't feel right." The youth said as he leaned against the walls of the ship with his arms crossed not looking up at his master. Kanan was halfway up the ladder to the top hatch.

"We skipped lessons yesterday because yesterday didn't feel right." The Jedi pointed out to his student.

"I know...but today is different. I feel like something is going to happen. I don't think we should go up on top. Please Kanan?" He sounded a little depressed and Kanan just assumed that it was because of how their bond was acting over the last month. He guessed it was teenager issues.

"Nope, come on." He said as his opened the hatch and climbed out.

* * *

Ezra had done anything and everything but pleaded with him after leaving the cockpit, begging him to cancel the lesson. The teen said he had a bad feeling but couldn't explain it. Kanan had just assumed it was the strange occurrence going on between them and forced him on the top, thinking an easy, fun lesson would help.

The older Jedi had made his way back to the beach walking over to Ezra. One sun had already set, the last was getting lower.

"I'm sorry kid…I should have listened…" The older man bent down and gently picked up the youth earning a small groan of pain from him.

Kanan turned and started walking for the trees, walking much slower, his body still trying to recover after hours in the water and moving branches. They had been lucky that there were no hungry sea or land creatures that had discovered them.

He set Ezra down gently right outside the shelter as he finished building up an area they could use as a sleeping pad. He lined it with dead leaves for extra warmth. By the time he had finished there was hardly any light in the sky besides the rising moon.

The Jedi picked up his padawan and got him settled in the back part of the make shift shelter. He had built up sand around any cracks or openings between the rocks to make sure no breeze got through. It was getting cold enough to see breaths but Kanan continued to make sure Ezra would be warm as possible.

He still felt guilty for forcing his student to train; he had just wanted to spend time alone with him, something that was becoming less and less common. With them being part of the fleet now, their training sessions were constantly cut short. He always felt calm and alive around Ezra, and something more.

" _More? What has gotten into me? He's my student, he's another guy, and he's younger._ " Kanan lectured himself knocking the thoughts from his head once again and hopefully permanently.

Kanan spent several minutes gathering up some wood before taking out his light saber. He hoped that it hadn't died in the watery rescue. He heard it activate and breathed a sigh of relief. He managed to get a small spark and quickly built up the fire. Lightsabers weren't designed as fire building tools, but Kanan figured why not?

During the wars he had to do this with his master a few times, so it wasn't new to him. He stripped out of his wet clothes and put them out to dry before going and starting to do the same with Ezra. The teenager groaned in protest as cold hands started to remove clothing from him exposing him to even more cold. Not once did he wake up though.

Kanan couldn't help but admire the teenager's well defined muscles and caught himself gently tracing the ones on his arms. Once again, the Jedi began to mentally beat himself at his actions not understanding what had gotten into him.

Changing directions, the Jedi started to do an overall assessment of Ezra's health. Kanan cursed at the sight of Ezra's leg. It had been burned pretty badly and was already starting to show signs of infection from what Kanan guessed was the bacteria in the water. He put up the orange and brown clothing to dry as well before climbing into the shelter and getting settled next to this student.

Being this close to Ezra felt foreign but comforting. He pulled the kid closer to him trying to share his warmth. This was the best way to do so, share body heat. Kanan was glad he had been trained to use the force to help guard him from weather elements and wished Ezra could do the same. After doing one more mental scan to make sure there was no danger, Kanan shut his eyes and allowed himself to drift while remaining partially alert to any signs of danger.


	3. Chapter 3: Just A Dream

****OKAY! Disclaimer :)**

 **I DO NOT endorse underage relationships! This is strictly fictional and as fiction upon doing research, a human being in the star wars world is claimed as an adult from the age of 13-21 depending on where they are located in the universe. For the purpose of this fic I will claim them at the age of 15 if they are from Lothal. Once again. This is FICTIONAL. If this was based on real life or real life timeframe I WOULD not even consider writing this fic. If you don't like, read "Don't Drink The Water". No relationships there! Thank you and enjoy!** ~Ocean**

 **Chapter 3: Just A Dream**

While the ship refueled, Hera and the others formed a plan of action to find the two lost Spectres. She currently had a large map of the ocean projected on screen covering the majority of the small room they had convened in.

"With currents and our projected area of entrance, we're looking at a 500-mile range of where they could be and it's getting larger by the hour." Sabine stated the information she had gathered. The Mandalorian was concerned about her friends. The planet's ocean was not a safe area, there were too many changing factors that could easily kill a human, even a Jedi.

Sabine knew of his swimming skills, or rather the lack of them. She had witnessed them first hand on Lothal about a month ago.

* * *

"So, why don't you and I go grab a bite to eat? We still have plenty of time before we have to be back at the ship, and you rarely ever open up. It would be the perfect time." The younger teenager asked as they walked. Hera had sent them on a supply run and slight recon mission to gather some local intel.

The two were currently walking along the giant city pond that spanned the Western region of the city. Ezra used to walk it all the time with his parents, sometimes throwing credits in and making a wish.

"How about not?" Sabine stated flatly as she continued walking. Ezra was looking down at the water and saw a really cool flower that he wanted to show her. The lily was really rare to see on Lothal and was endangered.

"Hey Sabine!" The male teenager grabbed the Mando's arm to stop her so he could show her knowing she liked pretty things. Her reflexes took over as she pushed Ezra away from her and into the pond.

She heard the splash. She kept walking assuming that he would just stand up and catch up with his pride damaged like always. The splashing didn't stop though.

Sabine turned back to see Ezra struggling to stay above the surface of the water. Ponds weren't supposed to be deep. She quickly dashed back and jumped over the small barrier jumping in the water. Grabbing him by the collar and dragging him to a shallow area.

"Why didn't you tell me you couldn't swim? I wouldn't have pushed you." She said breathing hard having to take her helmet off to release a buildup of water. She was scared knowing that Ezra could have died, but she wrote it off as frustration. She wouldn't let herself admit that she had feelings for him, that would ruin the game of chase they continually played.

"Why should I tell you? You shouldn't have pushed me! I was trying to show you this!" The youth said bitterly standing up coughing up more water. His hands were trembling but he reached down and grabbed the water flower throwing it at her getting out of the water and starting to walk back.

Sabine looked at the beautiful flower that had practically been trampled. It was a beautiful orange and purple, her favorite colors.

"Ezra I…" She started only to be interrupted by a transmission from Kanan telling them to hurry up and get back to the ship.

Kanan had felt the fear of his student and was concerned. He had a knack for getting into trouble. Kanan had noticed that he was able to sense a lot more in their bond that he didn't understand or find normal.

"Alright Spectre 1. We'll be back soon." Ezra sounded unharmed if not a little upset? Kanan smirked wondering what he had done to piss off Sabine this time. This thought causing him to forget the feelings he had felt just a few moments earlier.

* * *

"That's if they survived. They must've fallen at least 20,000 feet if not more. No organic could survive that." Zeb said sadly breaking the Mando from her thoughts.

"They survived…I know they did. Kanan wouldn't let anything happen to Ezra and surely he could have manipulated the force somehow to aid them." The Twi-lek urged, to silence any doubts.

"By the time we can get back out there the range will have expanded another 1000 square miles. The currents on this planet are extremely fast and the tides violently shift with the Moon and Suns' rotations." The Mando continued.

"Some vacation area. They make this place seem like a paradise, when in actuality it's a warzone waiting to happen with the elements." The Lesat said; he held no amusement for the situation.

"There are high swells and high levels of bacteria counts in the water." Sabine added, but she knew that Hera had this information.

"That and the temperature drops below freezing at night. It's already freezing and the last sun hasn't set yet." Zeb chimed in.

"How long will it take us to scan the search area allotting for the currents?" Hera said, continuing to look at the map.

Sabine started to type in a lot of information talking to herself quietly before she came up with her answer.

"With how fast the currents are, calculating direction changes, our trajectories, speed and refueling times….100 hours approximately as long as we follow the paths I lay out exactly and so long as we don't back track." The girls voice sounded less hopeful than what Hera wanted.

She understood why. She doubted that even Kanan could stay floating above the surface for that amount of time without fatigue or hypothermia setting in.

"What about feral creatures? And have we checked to make sure that somehow Imperials haven't found them?" Having them imprisoned gave a little light to the situation, rescue missions seemed to be their growing specialty.

"No, no recent intakes." Sabine confirmed before all of them sighed at once.

"Alright then we set out at dawn after the ship is refueled and stick to the paths, And the plan. If we haven't found them in 100 hours…we have to call the search off." Hera stood and walked out. Her last words made the sick feeling come back full force. She blamed herself for not being a good enough pilot. They should have been able to lose or take the TIEs out faster than that. She walked to her cabin and shut the door.

* * *

 _Kanan shifted and turned over on his bed. They were back on the ship. He heard the door opened and looked over. Standing in the doorway was his student. The older Jedi, sensing the need for comfort from his student, moved over as Ezra climbed weakly into bed with him. He pulled the covers over him, feeling the youth shivering violently against him._

 _As Ezra warmed up, the shivering died; Kanan could feel the attraction he had towards Ezra growing stronger and sensed the same feeling coming from the boy next to him. He brushed his student's hair to the side before planting a kiss softly on his lips, gently shifting them so Ezra was underneath him. His hand trailed down the teenager's sides resting on his abdomen._

Kanan woke with a start, sitting straight up, breathing hard and looking around before seeing that Ezra was still breathing, but a little ragged, and still sleeping. He got up and added more wood to the dying fire to build it back up.

" _I don't understand. Why?"_ He thought throwing a branch on. Why was he having that kind of dream? It was as worse as his normal nightmares…wasn't it? He had felt so warm though.

With the clothing dry, he gently dressed himself before going back into the shelter starting to dress his charge. He noticed that, aside from his sickly breathing patterns, Ezra was running a fever. Kanan gently tried to wake up the sleeping male.

Deep blue eyes fluttered opened weakly looking up at Kanan. They were glazed and unfocused.

"hugnn…." Was all his got out as he started to cough violently before ridding the contents of his stomach and partially his lungs of the water that had forced its way in. Kanan had just finished getting Ezra's pants on and had managed to get him outside of the shelter before he did, rubbing his back to help soothe him as his body continued to retaliate violently. After his body was finished purging itself, he slumped heavily against Kanan, shivering again. Kanan noticed his breathing was still off.

Kanan struggled slightly to get the top half of Ezra's clothing on to help get him warmer. He was exhausted still and Ezra wasn't being much help. The youth was dead weight and not cognitive. The Jedi hadn't slept much that night, concerned about his prodigy and he needed to make sure the fire stayed lit.

His mind was also plagued with thoughts that he was still trying to sort through. The main one causing a disturbance being the fact that he responded inappropriately to sleeping so close to his student. Kanan had planned on making sure to keep his distance since then until the feelings were sorted and purged.

That had been the plan anyway, but Ezra didn't know of the plan when he curled up against his master craving the warmth that Kanan was putting off. He shifted a little and ended up sprawled along and between Kanan's legs with his head and arms resting on his upper thigh. The Jedi hesitated before gently stroking Ezra's hair to try and comfort him. He could feel the pain and sickness that the teenager was undergoing and the condition of his leg wasn't improving but getting worse.

"I'm sorry Ezra…" Was all he said, he didn't know what else to say about the situation.

In response, Ezra shifted his head to try and find more warmth. He coughed, a little more water coming up, barely missing his mentor. Kanan was concerned that his body wasn't digesting the water that he had swallowed yesterday; something wasn't functioning internally and he wondered if it was a side effect of the bacteria.

" _Ezra needs water…He needs to stay hydrated. There's no water here that he can drink. Maybe there's something he can eat that will help though…"_ Kanan was in survival mode, but not for him, for teen in his lap. Kanan was physically fine, still a little tired but fine.

He shifted the youth and got him settled on the bed again before he stood. Ezra whimpered looking up at him with glassy eyes; he didn't want to move and thought that Kanan was going to tell him to get up and do something. He also didn't like that Kanan had moved away from him. He wanted Kanan to be closer.

"Shh..." Kanan knelt next to him on one knee, brushing his bangs back gently stroking his cheek noticing Ezra gave a miniscule smile. He realized what he was doing and shifted his hand, checking his fever. It was high.

"I'm going to go look around a little while. Stay here and try and sleep. I'll be close by if you need me." Ezra nodded and shut his eyes almost immediately asleep again. Kanan stood and looked around before picking a direction and taking it.

Kanan kept his guard up as he explored, he stopped upon finding a fruit tree, with produced fruit high up that he actually recognized as edible. He couldn't remember the name though. It resembled a real-world green coconut.

Using the force, he easily scaled the tree and took three fruits before jumping and landing gracefully in the sand. He made his way back to camp quickly, but not before scanning the skies for any signs of Hera.

When he arrived, Ezra was in the midst of a nightmare. He had felt the disturbance a few moments before arriving. He gently woke up the sleep padawan propping him up. Ezra curled up against him trembling all over, staying silent.

"It's okay, everything is alright." He gently crooned getting Ezra settled against him. Kanan noticed that his student settled down fast before just remaining against his master.

Ezra couldn't figure out why Kanan was being this nice and this gentle towards him. It felt nice, especially earlier when Kanan was stroking his face. He felt protected and loved when his master showed him affection. Growing up on the streets, Ezra had some not so pleasant run ins, some of which had caused him to be used to advances from both males and females.

Something had always drawn him to Kanan but he wrote it off when he started to get lectures about attachments. Right now, Kanan was allowing this behavior so he would take advantage of it. Over the last month or so Ezra had felt a strong connection and a stronger desire to be with him. It scared the youth and he found himself avoiding being alone with his master because of it.

His nightmare was actually caused from last night. Ezra was having a pleasant dream that he had crawled into bed with Kanan who started to gently place kisses on his face before shifting them leaning over his body. The nightmare started when Kanan shoved him away calling him disgusting and abandoned him saying he never wanted to see him again.

Ezra heard a lightsaber and then a slight cracking noise before he felt Kanan repositioning him to be sitting up a little more with his head against Kanan's shoulder. Something extremely sweet was brought to his lips. Ezra instinctively looked away not sure what it was, the smell making him ill.

"Come on kid…. you need some kind of fluid and this will give you some strength. It's good for you." Kanan tried a few more times before giving up when Ezra almost gagged after he had managed to get some into his mouth. Ezra didn't want anything in his stomach, the water that had been involuntarily swallowed had been enough.

"Maybe later then…" He drank a little of the fruit's interior liquid himself before putting it off to the side and getting Ezra settled again. His fever had gotten worse in just the little time he had gone, where was Hera?

Kanan hesitated before staying next to the Padawan feeling that he was calm and relaxed against his master. He didn't want to cause any stress.

* * *

Hera had completed 14 hours of trajectories and there had been no sign of her boys. With the gravitation being a little more than normal, the ship was running out of fuel much faster than anticipated. Soon she was returning for more after marking her location on the map.


	4. Chapter 4: Hope

**Chapter 4: Hope**

As the hours passed, Kanan thought about putting some kind of signal out for Hera to see; a fire, or rocks lined up, drawing in the sand. It seemed like a good idea until he heard a lone TIE patrolling the area; after that he decided to think of something else. The Jedi was glad that the fire didn't put off much smoke and he was well hidden watchful eyes of the Empire.

Next, but for only a brief, extremely fast moment, he considered gaining the attention of the Imperial vessel and striking a deal in order to get Ezra taken care of figuring out his escape later on. With how wanting they were now, no deals would be made and both of them would end up dead, or worse.

It would be dark again soon, and Ezra had yet to drink or eat anything, or wake up for that matter. Kanan had stayed close to him they rest of the day making sure he stayed warm. When he was warmer, he moved them to a shaded area occasionally leaving to make some modifications to the small shelter. When the sun was going down, Kanan gently tried to wake him again to try and get him to eat.

"nnn…" Ezra slowly opened his eyes, when he gathered where he was he blushed slightly seeing that his face was practically against Kanan's chest. The youth also noticed his master felt warmer than last time.

"You're running a fever…." He said weakly but in a 'matter of fact' way.

So are you. The bacteria in the ocean is really high on this planet we both swallowed enough water to make us sick but you not only inhaled it, it also got into your leg wound and there's nothing to disinfect with…I was starting to get worried you weren't going to wake up with how high your fever is." Kanan said softly as he shifted a little to sit up more.

"I need you to drink a little…it will help keep you hydrated." He grabbed the fruit from earlier and sat Ezra up again. This time he managed to get a few teaspoons into the younger male. Ezra turned his head away after swallowing a few times; he rested it against Kanan again gently breathing against his neck causing a series of emotions to explode the Jedi's mind.

Kanan blamed his next actions on the fever that was starting to get higher. He wrapped his arms around his student and shifted them a little, placing a gentle kiss on the top of his head before using his free hand to stroke his hair. He was aware of what he was doing, but Ezra didn't seem to be in any distress, and Kanan actually felt him relax a little more.

In fact, Ezra melted into the touch. His body craved this interaction seeming to want more. Kanan noticed how he responded and grew more confused and concerned. Had he not trained Ezra right? He told him that attachment was bad because it caused distractions and distractions led to the dark side. That's when it dawned on him that he was doing the same exact thing. The same thing he had been preventing himself from doing all day.

He quickly moved Ezra and got him settled on the makeshift bed in the corner, by himself. Kanan was going to have to distance himself from the youth to keep anything from happening.

As he did this however, he felt Ezra's signature shrink back with rejection, withdrawing himself mentally and curling up into himself. He had rejected his student; he didn't mean to, he just didn't want to do anything wrong and Kanan _knew_ this was wrong on many different levels.

He watched his student as he wrapped his arms around himself unconsciously, starting to shiver with the lost heat. Had pushing Ezra away hurt him that much? Kanan shook his head to clear his thoughts. This wasn't allowed, it was against their laws.

" _What laws?_ " Said a small voice in the back of his head. Kanan frowned. It was right, what laws? The order had fallen. Why was he trying to enforce something that didn't exist? Kanan weighed the situation before he noticed that the youth was losing body heat at an alarming rate due to the outdoor temperature. With the suns down and the fire not big, and with the injury and fever Ezra couldn't possibly keep his body temperature regulated.

Feeling really bad, he laid back down and pulled Ezra close to him again but he felt resistance this time, not like the first time when Ezra melted into him. Ezra almost felt scared to be this close and it hurt.

"Sorry kid…I didn't mean to hurt you…I don't know what is wrong with me. I don't understand…." Kanan apologized; the boy from his youth pointed out and made him understand Ezra's reaction that his adult mind had shut out.

"I didn't know you had feelings towards me Ezra. Why didn't you tell me?" He felt like he should be angry, that he should be appalled with both he and Ezra; and yet he wasn't. He was, content and at peace. Was the force telling him it was okay to feel this? He continued to feel hurt and rejection from his student, the shivering getting worse when a breeze came into the area. Kanan did his best to block it from hitting Ezra.

"I'm not mad or upset with you; just surprised…" It was the truth. Kanan was very surprised that Ezra had deeper feelings towards him, and that he actually responded and almost returned the feelings.

" _No, I do return the feelings. I just don't know how to physically do it."_

Something in the back of his mind kept telling him it was forbidden, but he shut that voice off as he pulled Ezra closer wanting him to warm up and melt against him again.

"Hera…the others…Jedi rules…" Ezra was struggling to form sentences because of the fever and everything else on top of it. His teeth were chattering and he coughed deeply. Kanan could hear the fluid in his lungs.

"Hera and I have a one-sided relationship. I have feelings towards her, but she can't return them. There are no more rules, we have to make them up as we go now." He was simply given a nod in response. They lay there for a long time in silence enjoying the warmth and comfort that each one provided the other. Ezra finally started to relax again.

The Jedi wasn't quite sure how a relationship with his student would work out, if it even could. If this was even real. Ezra was fairly delirious. A small pang of guilt and sadness hit Kanan. What if Ezra really had no feelings but this was just all the fever manifesting delusions.

"Ezra?" A very tiny groan emitted in response. Ezra didn't have the energy to open his mouth just to respond.

"We're going to explore this topic after we get you taken care of okay?" Another groan, this one sounded like it was understanding. Ezra shifted closer, once again breathing against Kanan's neck. That was the Jedi's weakness it seemed. It tickled and produced emotions that Kanan had only felt years ago when he was constantly moving around, sleeping around.

" _If he survives_ " Kanan hated that thought, but couldn't rule it out. At this rate, with no medication or any kind of supplies Ezra had maybe two or three days at the most. He could feel the youth's body starting to shut down; conserving energy for more vital organs.

When he was sure Ezra was asleep, Kanan sat up and started to look at his leg. Something prodded him to do so. It was swollen and the infection had gotten worse. Kanan sat staring at the leg for several minutes before his eyes shifted unconsciously and he noticed a lump in one of Ezra's pockets. The force hummed in his head as it tried to tell him something; he reached in and pulled out a small screw driver kit. Why would the force want him to find this?

The Jedi sat for a moment before it hit him. He grabbed his communications link and pried it open setting to work on trying to get it fixed. He could feel that Ezra was getting weaker, without medication or medical treatment it was only a matter of time before his body gave out; he had come to that conclusion. Kanan wasn't about to allow that to happen, not when he had questions unanswered. Now though, he had hope.


	5. Chapter 5: Rescued

**Chapter 5: Rescued**

Twi-lek pilot had yet to try and sleep. Her tired eyes scanned the water as she flew as close as she could. She had her high beams on so that she could see into the darkness. Hope was starting to dwindle. 72 hours had passed with no clue as to where the Jedi were. Hera heard the cockpit door open and the sound of Chopper coming in but she didn't look away from her current task. Chopper had brought Hera a cup of caf and tapped her beeping to let her know. The

"Thanks Chop…" Hera had the _Ghost_ on auto so that she could put full focus to scanning the water. She took a small sip. In his own native language, Chopper asked if there was any sign of them yet; the little droid concerned for his organic friends.

"I'm afraid there's no sign of them yet. We still have almost a full rotation to look though. I just know there out there somewhere; the question is…where?" She spoke to Chopper as if he was a regular organic being and not a droid. The droid wasn't fully able to understand emotions but he knew that Hera was tired and hurting.

They were running out of time and credits, and within the next hour, Hera would have to turn in to refuel for the last time. They agreed to look for the full scope of 100 hours, after that, the search would be called off and she would have to give in to the notion that she had lost two of her crew.

It hurt Hera deeply, she didn't want to lose anyone on the ship, especially not in this manner. If it had to happen, she thought it would be a sacrifice to destroy the Empire, not sinking to the bottom of an ocean. She had come to love all of them very much and they, in turn, had become her family.

Crackling came over the radio startling the pilot slightly. Hera immediately assumed that it was damage from the TIE fighter. The radio had been acting up since they had taken a few direct hits. The _Ghost_ had received a lot of damage with the shields down and refueling was the only time Hera would take time to work on it.

"Chopper, I need you to fix the communications please in case Sabine and Zeb find something and need to radio in." Chopper whirled and beeped that he had already done so.

"What? Then why is there static. Maybe it went down again. There's a lot of repairs that need to be done…soon." She said tiredly, staring at the radio. The static hadn't stopped like it normally did and was just a steady stream on, like someone had activated their link but wasn't speaking.

"re… _st_ …in" The pilot's eyes lit up as she heard the transmission. The voice was undeniably Kanan even though she couldn't understand what he was saying through the static.

"Spectre 1? I can hear you but there's too much static. Where are you?" Kanan heard her voice just as broken up, but a connection was a connection. He wanted to leap for joy but refused to disturb the sleeping teen currently in his lap.

He made a few more adjustments to the link in his hand. Ezra and Sabine were the best at hot wiring these things besides Chopper. Unfortunately, Ezra was in no shape to offer any assistance. The battery was going to quickly die so he'd only have one shot at this. One chance to get this right.

"Spectre 1 to _Ghost_ …hear me?" Hera was on the edge of her seat wishing that she could track a communication's link. She almost thought she was hearing things when he didn't respond; After all, she had been awake for almost 4 days straight now.

"I Hear you Spectre 1. I'm so glad you're alive. We've been worried sick. Is Ezra with you? Where is your location?" For the longest time there was nothing but static and Hera became frantic, worried that the battery died or the signal was lost. She made some adjustments to the radio hoping to find his voice again.

"Ezra's…" The static cut in, Hera didn't like Kanan's voice and it caused her to get a small pain in the pit of her stomach. Was Ezra alive? Was he even with Kanan?

"Listen to me Hera," Kanan ignored their code names. He didn't care right now if anyone was listening in; besides, half the Imperial Navy knew their names now.

"the battery is going to die. I need you to follow my directions, I'm going to try and find you and point you in our direction. We have one shot at this and we have to get it right." Hera remained silent waiting for her orders.

Kanan shut his eyes trying to feel out the _Ghost_ they were far, but not too far and if Kanan put Hera on a specific trajectory, he knew she would fly straight. He had felt the _Ghost_ in and out since they had fallen but he had no way of communicating. They had even gotten very close at one point.

"There…found you." His voice was distant because of his level of concentration it was taking to keep a mental eye on the ship and focus on the direction she was facing. He needed her to turn and face them.

"Rotate the nose 92 degrees South West" Kanan felt the ship shift direction as Hera followed. He soon felt it facing in his direction.

"Perfect as usual, Captain. We're 400 klicks straight ahead. On an islet with a beach on the south side and a cliff on the north. There's a TIE patrolling East to West every few hours so be careful." He felt the connection die and sighed. He hoped Hera had heard.

The Jedi looked down at the teenager. He gently stroked his head feeling the heat coming off him.

"She's on her way Ezra. Everything is going to be okay now. Just hang in a little longer."

* * *

"Spectre 4, Spectre 5 I found him. Rejoin with the _Ghost_ , sending coordinates now." Hera called over the radio. She was already heading towards the location having it set on her screen. Soon the smaller vessel was docked and the crew was speeding towards their goal.

The team had traveled about 200 klicks when they heard the all too familiar screaming engine above them.

"Not again. I'm getting really tired of these guys. Our shields are still down. Sabine, Aft. Zeb, Turret. Let's take it out before it can call for back up or hit us this time. I don't know if we can take another direct hit and we don't have the fuel to lose it and get to the boys." The two filed out of the cockpit and into position. Hera shut the beams off and flew up into the clouds, starting the hunt, glad that it hadn't seen her.

In no time at all they had found and destroyed it. Hera had a mission and nothing was going to stop her. Soon she had her ship back on course, paying close attention to the fuel that was starting to run dangerously low. They would have just enough to get them back.

Kanan waited a bit before he killed the fire and gathered up everything. He gently stroked Ezra's face again before picking the sleeping teen up making his way to the edge of the wooded area to wait for their pick-up.

The wind had a powerful bite to it and Kanan found himself shivering before he was able to call upon the force to help. He looked down at Ezra.

His student was completely limp and had made no noise at all when he had been moved or when Kanan accidentally bumped his leg up against a tree. The Jedi checked his vitals noting the drop in pulse before he re-positioned himself accidentally causing the youth's head to lull to the side. Kanan had to lean back slightly and gently bump Ezra up a little to get it re-positioned back on his shoulder.

"Just hang on Ezra. Hera's almost here." Just within the last few hours, his padawan's health had declined greatly and it scared him a little.

Hera arrived and landed, opening the main ramp. Kanan was sitting out of sight, holding Ezra close to him. Since the suns had set, the temperature was declining well below freezing. Kanan had stayed in a meditative state to keep from chilling, himself. He stood stiffly and walked towards the ship. Hera ran down and stopped, seeing them, before running over.

"Is he?" She said, scared of the answer. She looked at their youngest, he was very still and very pale.

"No, but he needs antibiotics and medical care." Hera helped get both of them up the ramp to warmth and safety. The ramp shut and they were soon back in the sky heading for the nearest refueling station.


	6. Chapter 6: Terms of Agreement

**Chapter 6: Terms of Agreement**

Kanan tossed and turned on his bed. Soon after treating Ezra, Hera had discovered that Kanan had a fever too, gave him a bacta injection and put him on immediate bed rest. The Jedi didn't protest and was soon in a potent, drug-induced sleep.

The door opened and Hera stepped in with a tray. It had been several hours, but there he was still asleep. The Twi-lek sat down next to the bed and took his temperature with one of the devices she had brought.

"103.2…" She frowned, His fever had only gone down 8/10ths of a degree.

While they were refueling, Hera had sent Sabine and Zeb to get medical supplies, mainly medication that wasn't resistant to the bacteria living in the water, bacta; the universal drug used for most ailments. That, along with a drug synthesized on this planet specifically for the bacteria. Hera was starting to think that it was the planet's way of making money because of how expensive it was.

She gently placed a cool cloth on Kanan's forehead, earning a small groan from the sick Jedi. Kanan rarely got sick; She hoped that they had caught the infection early enough. Ezra hadn't been so lucky.

"How's Ezra?" Hera startled and looked down at him surprised to see him awake.

"We had to move him from his room to the medical bay because of the infections. He's strong, I'm sure he'll be fine." She continued to take care of him, noticing a small shift with how he addressed his student. She had just assumed it was Jedi related and left it at that.

Kanan didn't remain awake long after; Hera left quietly after he was asleep again.

* * *

Days passed and Kanan was back to his usual self with one exception. He was avoiding his student. The Jedi hadn't gone to see his student yet since Hera had taken him off bed rest. He was scared and didn't know what to expect. Kanan had spent the extra time getting his feelings for Ezra sorted out.

Unfortunately, Hera and the others had left just a few hours ago to join the fleet for an assignment in the _Phantom_. Kanan was volunteered to stay behind and watch the youngest Spectre since he was still recovering himself. He tried to protest but Hera ended up giving him a direct order.

He was currently in the commons, sitting and enjoying a hot drink when he felt his student stirring. Over the last few hours, Ezra had stirred many times and Kanan had remained in the room he was currently in not wanting to put himself in a situation where he would have to open himself up.

" _Why am I avoiding him?_ " He thought silently. He still didn't know the answer. Was he scared of repercussions from the crew or his dead master, or was he scared of rejection from his student?

He was too busy in his own thoughts that he didn't hear Ezra's door slide open and the youth come stumbling out until he hit the wall and slid down it, falling into a coughing fit breathing hard when it subsided.

"Ezra?" Kanan got up quickly and strode over gently helping the teenager up. Ezra was shaking and leaned heavily against Kanan.

"Why are you out of bed? You need to be resting." His mood shifted and Ezra tried to stand on his own leaning against the wall. His mental wires were crossed due to being sick and because of that, he thought that Kanan was mad at him for something, so he was trying to distance himself.

"I woke up and I was alone…it was too quiet…was coming to find Hera" He confessed quietly to his master not looking at him. Kanan must think that he was being childish. Kanan felt his forehead; his fever was almost gone but his body was still weak. He didn't understand why he wanted Hera and not him though. Had he done something wrong?

"You can come sit with me and I'll make you some soup. Hera said you haven't been eating well." He gently led Ezra to the larger chair, sitting him down, going to heat up some soup. As he did, Kanan felt a tiny amount of hostility leaking from the sick Padawan. He decided they needed to talk now, while they were alone.

"I think we need to talk. About what happened?" Kanan had no clue that Ezra thought he was mad about not being able to stay on the ship, falling off and then panicking as much as he did in the water.

"Is that why you haven't come to see me?..." The youth said bitterly looking away from the soup that was put in front of him.

"Yes, I mean No…I mean…ug. It's complicated, alright." Kanan sighed heavily and took a seat. Maybe he had just been delirious…

"What do you remember and we'll start there." Kanan decided he would probe for information first, to see where to begin, if he even needed to.

"I remember trying to get to the hatch and falling. I remember you grabbing me with the force, but then I fell into the water. You ended up showing up and we got to land but it was cold. You built a shelter…" Ezra's memory was pretty foggy and he just remembered the main details. So far Kanan was in the clear to just pretend all of this never happened and continue staying in denial.

"At one point, you kinda shoved me off you and then apologized and told me that you didn't know I had feelings for you and you said that we would talk about it later…after that everything is blurry…I remember you stroking my face and softly kissing me…" Ezra added the last part almost silently.

" _Karabast…so he does remember…_ " Kanan watched him for a moment.

"I need you to be honest with me Ezra. I need to know exactly how you feel towards me." Kanan was trying to be rational and knew that this needed to be discussed since Ezra wasn't cognitive when it was first brought up.

"Why? So you can lecture me again about "attachments" and "relationships". No thank you. We can just pretend I didn't say anything." Ezra crossed his arms childishly looking away.

Kanan moved the soup closer to him as a peaceful gesture.

"No, so I can figure out how my feelings pan out in this as well and so that we can figure out what to do about it together." Kanan had finally admitted to himself that over the past several months he had developed feelings for Ezra. He had written them off as nothing more than emotions that he didn't understand due to his upbringing.

Besides just any relationship, Master/Padawan relationships were strictly forbidden because of how bonded the pair already was. Kanan was stepping far outside his realm of comfort admitting his feelings.

"Oh…" Ezra looked down, the anger leaving him, leaving him with mild embarrassment over his assumption.

"Now, what are your feelings towards me?" Kanan waited with great patience for Ezra to gather his thoughts.

"I don't really know. It's not the same feeling that I get when I see a cute girl but it's similar. When I'm close to you I feel…connected. Even more so than our usual bond. I feel warm. Like when I see the picture of my parents…only different…it's gotten stronger over the last month…" Ezra looked down. He didn't understand what he felt and didn't do a good job of describing it.

Kanan smiled gently at the confusion.

"It's the same for me. I don't understand the feelings either. I was always taught to suppress them, but with the Order gone, I don't feel the need to. The council was concerned that love lead to jealousy and that would in turn lead to the dark side. I feel that good has come from my attachments with the crew and with you so I can't condone it." It was Ezra's turn to watch his master. He was half leery, he felt like this was some kind of Jedi test. Would Kanan do something like that?

"On Lothal, what is the definition of adult? Depending on the system you're in, an adult is between 13 and 21."

"15. On Lothal, an adult is 15. That's when you can join the Imperial Navy because they consider you old enough to be away from your parents."

Silence fell between them for a long time. Kanan was weighing on the options and consequences that could become of a relationship. He and Ezra would have to work hard to make sure that it didn't cause any conflict of interest and that during missions, emotions would have to be set aside. The fleet couldn't know…meaning Hera and the others. It would just be between the two of them.

"You need to eat Ezra." Kanan finally noticed that the soup remained untouched. Ezra looked at the cup looking away again.

"Sorry Kanan…I'm just not hungry." Kanan sighed. He knew the infection Ezra had was destroying the youth's appetite.

"Later then." He was trying to figure out how to reach an ending to this whole relationship thing. It perplexed him and he was overthinking it but he didn't know what else to do. Ezra sensed this and leaned over quickly giving him a small kiss before leaning back again, not before Kanan gently grabbed him reflexively and return the kiss allowing it to last a little longer. When Ezra had regained his composure he continued.

"Terms: Secret between us two, not even Hera gets to know. It goes slow with the understanding that if it causes too much conflict in Jedi training or anywhere else, it ends, no hard feelings. No jealousy allowed, and all emotions are left out of assignments and missions no matter what." Kanan was caught off guard surprised that Ezra had been able to come up with arrangements so fast.

"Sounds like a deal." The older Jedi said.

"One more thing?" Ezra was staring at Kanan with a serious face.

"Anything. Name it."

"Hera cares about you with everything she has. If she ever chooses to start anything with you. We're over and you choose her." Kanan was taken back by this. He had already agreed so he nodded not thinking anything would ever come up between them.

"Agreed. I think we need to call this an open relationship then because I want the same terms for you. That way it will also lessen the chance of there being any issues caused from jealousy. And Ezra? I'm asking you to be patient with me on this…" Kanan looked away slightly before looking back at the teen.

"What we're doing would be considered forbidden activity with how I was brought up. This is pushing me well past my comfort levels, but I want to see how this turns out. The force seems to be pushing us in this direction and I trust the force." Ezra nodded before he started to get up.

Unfortunately, the teen stood too fast for his weakened state, and with the lack of food in his system he got dizzy, falling towards the floor. Right before he hit, he felt warm arms enveloping around his body and gently lifting him up.

"Easy kid…You're still really sick." Kanan picked him up the rest of the way noticing how light his student had become.

"When are the others coming back?" The youth asked, weakly resting his head against Kanan's shoulder. He felt a little awkward but at the same time, he felt like this was right.

"In a few days. Hera gave me a long care checklist for you." He passed Ezra's cabin and went to his own gently laying the padawan down right as a coughing fit wracked his body. He could feel the sickness radiating out.

"Kay…" He tried to sit up but Kanan pushed him gently back down, kissing his forehead and another on his lips before sitting back up.

Very gently, the Jedi started to take care of the sick teenager. Making sure all the medications were taken or inhaled as per instruction, and his leg was treated. The infection was clearing up at least. He placed his hand over Ezra's chest shutting his eyes and feeling around with the force.

"Your lungs are clearing up. They're inflamed still and filled with fluid though…" He said before opening his eyes giving his student a sad look.

"I'm sorry I had you on the roof. I should have listened to you…" Kanan blamed himself for the whole incident.

"It's okay. I'm sorry I panicked and almost drowned you…" Ezra didn't blame his master.

"Yeah, I guess you need to take some swimming lessons…in water that isn't festering with bacteria."

"Sounds like a good plan…" He liked Kanan's bed. His master had a calming smell and the bedding was saturated with it. Ezra breathed it in deeply before coughing. Within a few more moments Ezra was fast asleep.

After finishing his afternoon checklist, Kanan scooted Ezra over gently, without waking him and climbed in bed. He wrapped a protective arm over him placing a soft kiss to the back of his head, feeling the younger male smile softly in his sleep. Sleep soon claimed the older Jedi, both staying asleep the remainder of the night.

* * *

When Ezra woke the next day he felt better. Kanan still had him in his protective embrace waking as soon as Ezra tried to sit up.

"You okay?" He looked up wondering if something had happened? When Ezra snuggled closer to him, Kanan relaxed again. He reached up and pushed Ezra's hair to the side. He could feel that Ezra's fever was gone, causing a small smile to grace his lips.

Ezra didn't want to move. He was safe, he was warm and he had Kanan. If they stayed like this forever, he would have not protested. Kanan ruined those plans when he started to sit up.

The youth pouted slightly as his heat source left. He was fixing to say something but Kanan silenced him with a loving kiss. Ezra melted. The older Jedi broke it and planted a whisper soft trail over his jaw line before reaching his neck.

Ezra shut his eyes feeling a hand trace down his chest onto his abdomen before Kanan pulled back and stood. Kanan was teasing him!

Kanan chuckled softly. He was going to have fun and began thinking of all the ways he could incorporate this newly founded relationship into training to use as a motivator and as a source of testing.

"The agreement was slow." He bent down and kissed his forehead.

"Now, what do you want for breakfast?" He asked, getting back up and heading for the door.

"Space waffles?" Ezra smiled watching Kanan return the smile before he left.

They still had a few days alone to build their relationship. Ezra had the feeling that from now on, they would be having a lot of Master/Padawan time alone though. He relaxed back into the pillow sighing softly shutting his eyes. His life had never felt so right.


	7. Feedback

Okay, lots of requests to continue the story.

Review and let me know what you people want. Be it more chapters, a sequel, or if you have story ideas.

I haven't gotten a lot of reviews or actual views of the story or the other version, so I'm assuming that it doesn't have a lot of interest, and the slash is awkward for me to write. Which is why I ended the stories.

Let me know guys!

~Ocean


	8. Decision

Sooooooooo,

I'm in the ER right now waiting to see if I'm about to be admitted. While waiting I feel like I need to clarify a few things due to a small complaint I felt in a comment. Not angry, just feel like it was a lack of communication or knowledge.

I got a comment from a guest on my story Delirious Findings earlier today. To that guest:

1) If you didn't like or approve of the pairing, or feel uncomfortable with the pairing, why did you read the story? I created another story pretty much identical with no slash what so ever for those that wanted to read a Kanan and Ezra father/son type fic, I even made a comment about it in this story and on the other. It's called "Don't Drink The Water' . I have gotten no other complaints from anyone else about this.

2) I never once even made mention of a Hera/Ezra pairing, I'm sorry if you read this wrong. I would not write a fic based off those two pairing up or the suggestion of it inside of one of my stories. Hera is too much of the mother of the crew, and Ezra's surrogate mother in my own opinion. In the chapter, Ezra told Kanan to stay open minded to Hera. Kanan mentioned him doing the same, but not towards the twi-lek. I would have thought of Sabine, or a rando girlfriend he would find on their journeys. Just wanted to clarify

As for my decision…I'm going to continue thinking while I'm here waiting. I have a friend willing to continue writing a sequel based off 'Delirious Findings'. If she writes it, it will just be posted under my name. I have plenty of stories written including one suggested by another guest user. I already have the fic written about Kanan and Ezra having an argument and then Ezra "sacrifices" himself. I'm just I the process of editing and drafting it so it hasn't been posted If you have more suggestions please please let me know! I love fresh ideas!

Love you all!

Ocean


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